Croatia v England (2018 World Cup)
| next = }} Croatia v England was a match which took place at the Luzhniki Stadium on Wednesday 11 July 2018. Preview and teams's preparation Croatia's first-choice right-back Sime Vrsaljko has been ruled out with a knee injury suffered in the win over Russia. Goalkeeper Danijel Subasic will be monitored after suffering from a hamstring issue in that game. England manager Gareth Southgate was given a boost when all 23 players in his squad trained fully on Tuesday. Jamie Vardy is available after sitting out the win over Sweden with a groin problem, while Jordan Henderson has overcome a tight hamstring. Croatia head coach Zlatko Dalic: "We have nice memories from France Croatia reached the semis in 1998, our players did a great job ... We want to get close to them, although it is difficult to repeat this endeavour, but we will try." "We respect everyone - England, Belgium, France. But none of the three squads is better than us!" England manager Gareth Southgate: "As I have got older, I have become more conscious that it is easy to avoid challenges and avoid putting yourself on the line. "But in the end you will never know the possibilities of great success or great moments like we have had in the last few weeks. "The brain sometimes tells you to avoid the possibility of disappointment or failure but that is going to happen. "The key is how you respond to failure and react to it." Head to head They have have met once before at a major tournament - England won 4-2 in a group stage match at Euro 2004. This will be their eighth meeting overall; England have won four times, Croatia twice, with one draw. Croatia's last victory against England was the infamous "Wally with the Brolly" match which Croatia won 3-2 at Wembley in November 2007 to end England's hopes of qualifying for Euro 2008. Six of the previous seven games have also been played on a Wednesday. Match England's bid to reach a first World Cup final since 1966 came to an agonising end as they lost in extra time to Croatia in Moscow. Juventus striker Mario Mandzukic scored the winning goal in the 109th minute of the semi-final, slotting in from Ivan Perisic's flick-on into the area. Gareth Southgate's side - playing England's first semi-final since they were beaten on a penalties by West Germany at Italia 90 - were given the perfect start through Kieran Trippier's 20-yard free-kick after only five minutes, but Perisic's 68th-minute equaliser sent the match into extra time. England's players were inconsolable at the final whistle as the dream was snatched away and they can take great pride and credit from this World Cup - but the pain was etched on their faces as well as that of manager Southgate. Croatia, in sharp contrast, were jubilant and will now face France in the World Cup final in Moscow on Sunday. Unfancied before the competition, England defied expectations by reaching the semi-finals, but were undone by an experienced Croatia side. Harry Kane's golden touch deserted him when he missed a great chance to double their lead while Jesse Lingard also wasted a chance by shooting wide. As England allowed their opportunity to slip from their grasp, Croatia grew in confidence. England lost momentum after the break and were punished when Perisic stole in ahead of Kyle Walker for an athletic finish. Croatia, with Luka Modric the orchestrator, had taken control as England faded, Perisic hitting the post and Jordan Pickford saving magnificently from Mandzukic, before the winger made the decisive contribution with 11 minutes of extra time left. The 32-year-old reacted quicker than John Stones in the area to beat Pickford - and England had nothing left to give. England will now play Belgium in Saturday's third/fourth place play-off in St Petersburg. Details Mandžukić |goals2 = Trippier |stadium = Luzhniki Stadium, Moscow |attendance = 78,011 |referee = Cüneyt Çakır (Turkey) }} |valign="top"| |valign="top" width="50%"| |} Match Stats Match Stats= {| class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center" |- !width=130|Overall !width=70|Croatia !width=70|England |- !scope=row|Goals scored |2||1 |- !scope=row|Total shots |22||11 |- !scope=row|Shots on target |7||2 |- !scope=row|Ball possession |55%||45% |- !scope=row|Corner kicks |8||4 |- !scope=row|Fouls committed |23||14 |-| Images= Croatia v England (2018 World Cup).1.jpg Croatia v England (2018 World Cup).2.jpg Croatia v England (2018 World Cup).3.jpg Croatia v England (2018 World Cup).4.jpg Croatia v England (2018 World Cup).5.jpg Croatia v England (2018 World Cup).6.jpg Croatia v England (2018 World Cup).7.jpg Croatia v England (2018 World Cup).8.jpg Croatia v England (2018 World Cup).9.jpg Croatia v England (2018 World Cup).10.jpg Croatia v England (2018 World Cup).11.jpg Croatia v England (2018 World Cup).12.jpg See also *2018 FIFA World Cup :*2018 FIFA World Cup knockout stage External links *Match report at BBC.co.uk Category:2018 FIFA World Cup Matches